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John-Paul Plewa leaves his Rosewood Drive home by kayak to begin his commute to work. More than a week after Hurricane Matthew first hit the area, some Socastee residents have managed to stay in their homes despite ongoing flooding.
Brittany Peterson / McClatchy

In the Socastee neighborhood of Rosewood, the stillness of the reflective flood water surrounding the houses was broken by John-Paul Plewa’s morning commute to work.

Plewa’s house is surrounded by deep water, and he and his wife were going to work via kayak. He’s never kayaked to work before.

“Actually last year, we were pretty close to having to do it,” he said. “We just used the chest waders. It took two weeks for the water to go down. So we’re not really looking forward to that because I assume it’s going to be the same thing this year. So this is what we’ll do for now.”

They’ve always been a recreational piece but now it’s part of everyday life. It’s been pretty crazy. John-Paul Plewa

Plewa works as the assistant superintendent at Whispering Pines Golf Course, and his wife works as a nurse at Grand Strand Medical Center.

“I usually go in about 5:30 a.m., but I had to wait for her,” he said. “We wanted to wait for daylight. She was a little nervous going out in the dark, just because you can’t really see what’s in the water.”

Plewa and his wife have to park past the police barriers on Rosewood Drive, and they roll their kayaks to his truck, where the kayaks stay during the duration of their day until they return home.

“My sister gave them to my wife and I as a wedding gift because we live down by the waterway,” Plewa said of the kayaks. “They’ve always been a recreational piece but now it’s part of everyday life. It’s been pretty crazy.”